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Hickenlooper, Dems back Boulder County trustee moonlighting at Capitol

By Lynn BartelsThe Denver Post

Posted:
02/07/2013 11:07:01 AM MST

Updated:
02/07/2013 11:53:10 PM MST

Former lawmaker Paul Weissmann, the appointed Boulder County trustee, also works as a legislative aide for the House Democrats, a practice some Republicans say is inappropriate.

Weissmann makes $72,500 as trustee and works up to 20 hours a week as a $10-an-hour aide.

Speaker Mark Ferrandino, D-Denver, said he thinks Republicans are still upset that Weissmann, a master of the rules, has helped Democrats outmaneuver the GOP at times, including providing advice during last year's dramatic fight over civil unions.

Gov. John Hickenlooper, who appointed Weissmann, also sees no problem.

Paul Weissmann (2008 file handout)

"It's not about Paul. Paul's a great guy," said Rep. Ray Scott, R-Grand Junction. "It's about problems with the trustees."

Trustees are charged with serving as the impartial administrators of a county's foreclosure system. In most counties the treasurer performs the duty, but the governor appoints the treasurer in 10 counties. Some lawmakers think that the system needs to change.

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"In the other counties, those trustees can't come down here and work as a legislative aide," Scott said. "They're accountable to their counties."

Hickenlooper spokesman Eric Brown said there is "no prohibition on outside employment, no evidence of conflict of interest and no evidence his trustee duties have been compromised."

"This sounds more like politics than legitimate concern about conflicts of interest," Brown said. "Paul is an exceptional ex-legislator trying to contribute his expertise to public service — qualities that we ought to encourage."

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Weissmann also is the manager of the Blue Parrot Restaurant in Louisville, where he bartends on the weekends and does the books from 5 to 6 a.m.

Weissmann said some days the trustee job is full time, some days it's not and he's not someone who can sit at a job "40 hours a week and play video chess."

"I've made this offer to (lawmakers) to come up and see what I do," he said, adding he's cut one position in the office. "If it's a question of whether I'm fulfilling my job, I'm more than happy to answer that."

As for his legislative duties, Weissmann reads bills, analyzes them, flags potential problems and provides the history on the issue — which Ferrandino said is invaluable because of the impact of term limits.

Weissmann said a chunk of the work is done after hours on his own time.

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